GWINNETT COUNTY STARTS BIKE/WALK PILOT PROJECT

According to a May 10th Atlanta Journal-Constitution article,"Parent Lisa Carthy and sons Dylan and Jake walk a half-mile to Mason Elementary each morning, passing a long queue of cars snaking through the school's parking lot and down Bunten Road. They typically beat car-riding neighbors to the school's front door. On mornings when traffic congestion is especially annoying, Carthy often will greet neighbors still idling in traffic on her return trek home. Like a Pied Piper of pedestrians, she tends to attract other walkers on her journey, as harried parents call out, 'Can my child join you?'

"'We have seven subdivisions around Bunten, all within easy walking distance to the school,' Carthy said. 'In the foreseeable future, we'll have nine neighborhoods. It's hard to imagine why families who live so close will idle in traffic for a half-hour or more some morning and afternoons.'...Since January, Mason has piloted the Safe Routes to School program in Gwinnett. On two recent Sunday afternoons, the school sponsored bicycling safety clinics for youngsters, directed by the Atlanta Bicycle Campaign.

Source:
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/gwinnett/0504/10classfea.html
Archive search: http://www.newslibrary.com/sites/ajc/
Title: "Pilot program encourages walking, cycling"
Author: M. Elizabeth Neal